Of Raising Daniels and Fresh Resolve

I’m not going to lie to you… I went into Tuesday, excited and hopeful. As the evening wore on, a knot began to form in the pit of my stomach. We turned the television off and I sat quietly for a long while. I love how God is always there, just waiting for me to quiet my mind and listen. Despite my natural inclination to P.A.N.I.C., He reminded me that HE is the God of history and He is the one that sets rulers in place.

Panic melted away and a growing sense of resolve took its place. God has called me to this place in history. He’s called you too. He knew what He was doing when blessing us with our beautiful children. He knows their future.

My mind kept going to Daniel {of lion’s den fame}. As a girl, I loved reading about his early years in Babylon, about how he stood firm in his faith, about how he had a huge impact and influence on the pagan culture that had taken him captive.

As a parent, I can’t help but think of his parents. I’m keenly reminded that we need to sow into our children as Daniel’s parents did. Daniel was taken from his home during his teen years and thrust into a hostile culture that sought to re-educate him so that he could serve and believe as a Babylonian. They went so far as to even give him a new name. Instead of Daniel – meaning “God is my judge,” they gave him the name Belteshazzar – {prince of Bel -a Babylonian god}. If you think this was purely coincidence, check out the name changes they gave to his friends: Hananiah {God Who Is Gracious} became Shadrach {Command of the Moon god}, Mishael {Who is Like God} became Meshach {Who is what Aku is} and Azariah {God has helped } became Abednego {Servant of the god Negal}.
 
Talk about a mind job. The goal of the conquering culture was to reeducate them into currently acceptable belief and have them reject the faith of their roots. And you know what? The Bible alludes to the fact that Daniel and his 3 friends were the only ones that stood firm. Daniel 1:8 says that “Daniel purposed in his heart that he would not defile himself.” He was resolved to stand firm. Despite everything that the Babylonian empire had to offer, He graciously stood firm. God granted him favor and used him mightily. Not only did he maintain an intimate relationship with God, not only did he live in obedience to God - at the risk of losing his own life, but he had a huge impact on those around him and rose to be a leader within the culture.

I couldn’t stop thinking about him this week and the love and care his parents must have devoted to establishing him in God’s truth. It brought me to my knees in fervent prayer and excited anticipation.

My mandate that evening:

P.R.A.Y.

·         Earnestly pray that God would touch their hearts and that they would fall head over heels in love with Jesus!!!

      ·         Pray that He would establish them deep in Him.

·         Pray that my children would look to Him for provision and protection.

·         Pray that God would grant them supernatural discernment.

·         Pray that God would reveal to them (and me too) how He wants to use them to impact the culture.

·         Pray that I would remain steadfast and intentional with these precious years of training and discipling!

P.R.E.P.A.R.E

·         Read the Bible, Study the Bible, Memorize the Bible. They need to be grounded in the TRUTH. When the truth is rooted deep in their hearts it will make it so much easier to weather any wave of false doctrine or worldly influence that might seek to derail them.

·         Apply the Truth. Help my children see how the Word of God applies in day-to-day life as we model how to really live the Christian life. In a culture that bifurcates life into secular vs. sacred, I 'purpose' to show my children how to live an integrated life where we live what we believe.

·         Train them to think deeply, listen to the Holy Spirit as they learn to use discernment.

·         Diligently pursue our academic studies. The world needs leaders – full of wisdom and possessing knowledge. {That was the earthly reason why the Babylonians took Daniel and his friends in the first place.}

If our children are arrested by the love of Jesus, established in His Word than nothing can shake them. Nothing that our culture throws at them will sway them.

If our children are equipped with knowledge and discernment and able to engage the culture than they can be used by God to influence and impact the culture in practical ways too!

Do I feel equipped to do this? Not entirely. Is HE able to accomplish this? Absolutely

I'm up for the challenge. Is anyone with me?

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